Globe Telecom Elevates Its Network Security

Founded in 1935, Globe Telecom is the largest mobile telecommunications company in the Philippines, serving about 60 million customers. The company’s mission is to improve the lives of Filipinos by connecting everyone in the country through the internet, and offering them innovative technology services. Examples include GCash, its flagship payment platform with 94 million users. When it came to protecting its customers and preserving their trust in Globe’s products and services, the company called upon Akamai Guardicore Segmentation to strengthen its network security.

To deliver on its commitment to connecting Filipinos through secure communications, Globe calls upon multiple measures. These include everything from championing awareness initiatives for online safety and literacy to continuously enhancing its cybersecurity infrastructure.

As part of being prepared for, addressing, and effectively managing cyberthreats, Globe’s security operations center (SOC) monitors both IP and network workloads in a unique, converged approach. However, on the network side, the SOC team faced challenges gaining observability and control over certain workloads. As Anton Reynaldo Bonifacio, Chief Information Security Officer of Globe, explains, “We were very worried about someone accessing our network and moving laterally across it. And we were very worried about the complexity of securing both our IT and network workloads.”

Bonifacio’s group tried to address the problem by building enclaves and deploying hardware firewalls in between, but that got very expensive. Committed to persistently modernizing its IT and making cybersecurity a priority as it transitions from a telco to a techco, Globe knew it needed a different approach.

With Akamai Guardicore Segmentation, Globe found an affordable, elegant solution to its challenges. The telco’s security team found it easy to install the lightweight agent. It was also pleased that the agent supports both modern and legacy operating systems deployed across Globe’s environment.

Most importantly, Akamai Guardicore Segmentation enabled Globe to address its security needs. “We were able to implement Layer 7 segmentation, eliminate unnecessary connections, and strictly control what is and isn’t acceptable on our network,” explains Bonifacio.

The ability to establish strong rules to prevent and contain lateral movements significantly reduced the telco’s threat surface and empowered it to better mitigate advanced cyberthreats. “With complete visibility into our environment, we can effectively monitor and control traffic on our network and prevent data breaches — and deliver on our promise to customers,” says Bonifacio.

As the CISO says, Globe doesn’t buy products — it builds relationships with partners focused on the problems it needs to solve. “Akamai is that partner when it comes to cybersecurity,” concludes Bonifacio.

Globe Telecom, Inc. is a leading full-service telecommunications company in the Philippines and publicly listed in the PSE with the stock symbol GLO. The company serves the telecommunications and technology needs of consumers and businesses across an entire suite of products and services, including mobile, fixed, broadband, data connectivity, internet, and managed services. It offers innovative digital solutions in the areas of fintech, healthtech, adtech, climate tech, shared services, and venture capital. In 2019, Globe became a signatory to the United Nations Global Compact, committing to implement universal sustainability principles. Its principals are Ayala Corporation and Singtel, acknowledged industry leaders in the country and in the region.